As the sun climbed the morning sky, nearing the tops of the trees and shedding its light across the blankets of snow on the ground, Cole sat at the dining room table. He’d made more coffee. He made it even stronger. He added even more sugar.
The others had stayed awake for a little bit, but then one by one they had fallen back asleep.
Except Stella.
She walked into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of coffee. She sat down in a chair diagonally from Cole, her back to the others who slept in the living room.
Cole glanced at her, but he didn’t feel like questioning her. She wasn’t going to answer him anyway and he was tired of it. He was tired of all of this. His nerves were fried and he was just tired.
“I’m sorry,” Stella whispered to Cole.
He turned and looked at her.
“About Trevor. I didn’t know he was your brother at first. I should’ve seen the resemblance. I’m sorry about what happened to him.”
Cole nodded. She seemed sincere, but he couldn’t be sure with her anymore.
“I don’t know what’s out there,” she told him. “I swear to you, that’s the truth.”
Cole just stared at her.
“What did you see in that freezer?” she asked in a low voice, almost a whisper. She turned and looked into the living room at the others for just a moment, and then she looked at Cole again.
“Tom Gordon’s in that freezer,” Cole told her. “That’s where he’s been the whole time. Needles had a nightmare and freaked out.”
Stella stared at Cole for a long moment and then she just nodded.
“Why won’t you tell me everything that happened down at that dig site in New Mexico?”
Stella thought it over for a moment. “I want to trust you. But I don’t know if I can.”
Cole just stared at Stella for a long moment. There was nothing he could do or say to make her trust him now. She had been right earlier when she asked how he could ask for her help after carjacking her and David and pointing a weapon at their faces.
“Frank will be back,” Stella whispered, catching Cole off guard a little. He stared at her.
“He’s going to ask for something else,” Stella continued, “and you have to give him what he asks for, no matter what it is, or someone else will be taken.”
A sudden anger flared up inside of Cole. “And you’re just telling me this now? Why didn’t you tell us this before, when Frank asked for the money? If we would’ve known to put the money out there, then maybe Trevor would still be alive.”
“You wouldn’t have believed me if I would’ve told you before, and you know it,” Stella answered Cole through clenched teeth. Her eyes burned into Cole’s eyes.
Cole sighed, whether he wanted to admit it to her or not, he knew she was right.
“He still wants the money?” Cole asked Stella in a whisper.
“He doesn’t want the money. It doesn’t have anything to do with the money. It never did. He wants things and you have to give them to him no matter what they are.”
Cole stared at Stella. “What is he going to ask for next?”
Stella stared back, but she didn’t answer.
“You know, don’t you?” Cole whispered. “You know what he’s going to ask for next.”
Stella jumped as someone touched the back of her neck. She whirled around in her chair and she was face to face with David. She hadn’t even heard him walk up behind her from the living room.
And Cole hadn’t seen David walk up behind Stella.
David stared at Stella and Cole. “He’s outside again. He’s calling you.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Cole woke Jose and Needles up. Jose jumped to his feet and claimed he’d only been asleep for a few minutes. Cole didn’t want to argue with him.
“What time is it?” Jose asked as he struggled to come fully awake.
“About ten o’clock,” Cole answered as he slipped on his leather gloves.
Cole put his coat on and zipped it up. He checked his gun.
Needles jumped up from his recliner. “I’m not going out there again,” he said. He looked at Cole. “I want my gun back.”
“Not right now, Needles,” Cole said and looked at Stella. “Get your coat on, I want you out there with us this time.”
Stella stared at Cole. “I’ll get David’s coat.”
“Leave him inside this time. Needles will keep an eye on him.”
“I’d rather not let David out of my sight,” Stella said.
Cole didn’t say anything – he wasn’t giving her a suggestion.
“I’ll watch him,” Needles said and then he glanced at the front door. He seemed to be trying to be helpful, but Stella could see something else in Needles’ eyes, something buried deep inside there, something sinister.
Jose’s words from last night echoed through Cole’s mind – “If I see Frank again, I’m going to get some answers out of him. I promise you that.” Cole didn’t want David outside if Jose started shooting at Frank and Frank or whoever else was out there in the woods decided to shoot back. But he didn’t want to go into a long explanation about it with Stella.
Stella got her coat on and she walked over to David who sat rigidly on the couch, his spiral notebook on his lap. She crouched down in front of him and smoothed his long hair back. She looked into his dark eyes. She could see the fear in those eyes. “You sit right here,” she whispered to David. “Don’t come outside no matter what you hear. Okay?”
David just nodded.
“We’ll only be out there for a few minutes.”
Again David nodded. Stella hugged him, and then she stood up and looked at Needles. She didn’t have a good feeling about leaving David in here with him, but she could be back inside in a few seconds if she needed to. At least Needles didn’t have his gun with him anymore.
Cole, Jose, and Stella gathered at the front door, bracing themselves for a moment before Cole unlocked and opened the door. Cole and Jose checked their guns again, making sure they had full clips and making sure a bullet was chambered and ready. Cole had reloaded Needles’ gun and he had it stuck into the back of the waistband of his pants. He had Trevor’s gun in his coat pocket.
Cole glanced at Stella. She had been about to tell him a few minutes ago what Frank was going to ask for – but now he was going to find out for himself.
Cole unlocked the door. He opened the door. He stepped out onto the front porch. Jose and Stella followed him, and the three of them stood close to each other on the porch. Stella closed the door, but she left it open just a crack. She didn’t want to shut the door all the way, and she wanted to be close to the door.
The three of them stared out at Frank who stood in the same spot in the snow as before. He looked the same, same blue flannel shirt, same pants, same unanimated face, his head cocked to the side at an odd angle. He looked like a puppet waiting for his strings to be pulled.
Frank came alive, and that creepy smile was on his face in an instant. “Hi, everyone!” he shouted and gave them a mechanical-like wave of his hand.
“What did you do with Trevor?” Cole shouted.
Frank’s smile drooped and his face dropped in an exaggerated frown. “Oh, that was unfortunate,” he told them.
“What did you do with his body?!” Cole yelled.
“You have to give him what he wants!” Frank said with the frown still on his face. “You have to give him exactly what he wants or bad things will happen.”
“We’re not doing anything anymore until you tell me what you did with Trevor!”
Frank stood motionless in the snow, his head cocked to the side, almost like he was listening to something no one else could hear. “You really want to see Trevor again?” Frank asked.
“Yes, right now! Where is he?!”
But Frank didn’t answer.
“Who is doing this? Why doesn’t this person come out and show himself?!” Cole yelled; he could feel the rage building up inside of him again, he felt like he was going to snap at any second. “I want to see him!!”